It’s coming to an end; this one for sure. Huludao was dieselised in December 2007, so this destination had to be replaced by Nanpiao. Workshop 701 is very likely to be closed in 2008 and, last but not least, for the first time we have found a long rake of wagons usually used for coal and overburden out of use dumped in the open cast mine at Zhalai Nuer. Obviously they have started to reduce their activities in preparation for the end of open cast mining around 2010.
However, the trip was full of steam (almost 50 different steam locos were seen in use), and it’s far too early to say that it’s not worthwhile travelling to China. It’s absolutely beyond my understanding why more and more enthusiasts are not considering China as a hot spot for steam any more. Many travellers tell me about their very last trips to China. For sure they’ll miss a lot. Each one of our destinations alone would justify a longer stay (we’ll do this in Autumn 2008), a further visit or even a whole trip. One by one:
No, I didn't manipulate the colours, I used a Nikon F100, 2,8/80-200, Fuji Chrome Velvia 50.
Although we weren’t keen to note every locomotive’s number, we saw more than 25 SY’s in service here. In the morning it seemed to be a slow start, but by afternoon it was the same old game: too much action to capture even half of it. There were delightful moments with six moving trains at once, all fitting in one picture! Full-deflector SY 1416 was in use as well, although not seen during our short stay.
The alarming news is that many of the wagons were out of use, dumped on one track in the middle of the open cast pit. Hence, fewer trains were seen during morning and noon, only the afternoon was as busy as ever.
The workshop at Cheliangchang was as good as ever, one heavy overhaul undergoing (SY 1654), some minor repairs and the (in Autumn 2007) closed building of the shed re-opened again. Nanzhan was a disappointment with only two locomotives seen in one hour. One loco was the shunter for the wagon repair shop, the other one came in with an overburden train. The loco was served with coal and water, but never uncoupled from the train. So it’s not as good as before.
The passenger train ran, luckily, hauled and “pushed” by steam. The two coaches were coupled together on their way from 510 back to Nanzhan. The leading loco hauled the train while the engine at the end didn’t work. The latter one was uncoupled in 536 station (to locate stations like “510” or “536” see my sketch map under the point trip reports -> maps) and went light engine up a spoil dump to pick up a train.
Zhalai Nuer is now better connected to Beijing. There is a Hainan Airlines flight from Beijing to Manzhouli in the morning. When you sit on the right side window you can see the whole open cast mine from the air. It was an amazing sight to see some 20 locomotives under steam just ten minutes before we arrived in Manzhouli. From there it takes you less than half an hour to the steamy hole.
Locomotives noted:
Nothing compares to the “Little Pass” at Huanan. Nothing else can compete! Any more to say? I don’t think so, everything is mentioned on the FarRail site as well as on several other sites in the world wide web. As our group was larger than usual we used some private houses of local farmers for accommodation. Clay houses with no electricity! So we had a unique 5th century feeling while having a tasty candlelight dinner from food which was planted and harvested in a radius of 200 yards around the house. Big advantage this time: I ordered fresh bedding for our group. It was really nice to sleep in clean, brand-new bedding than in the usual 20-years-in-use-without-washing stuff.
The last day of our stay the traffic was minor and operated with two locomotives only. This brought the number of trains down to one or two in 24 hours only, unfortunately operating during the dark hours of the day. Nevertheless, we got a vast amount of good shots the two days before. The line was reported to be closed shortly after our visit.
The temperatures dropped below minus 30 on the first night with a minimum of minus 35 degrees Centigrade on the last morning. This day the wind made it really hard to wait along the line - for no trains during daylight hours!
By the way, Huanan is the last outpost in the world where you can experience regular steam hauled and banked narrow gauge trains. In 2007 the line operated half of the year, the other six months there was no traffic. A bit tricky for the visitor, but when they’re running it’s one of the most rewarding steam lines remaining. As I said, nothing compares to Huanan.
The following locos were noted under steam/in service:
No news is good news. No one knew anything about additional diesels. In Didao, Donghaikuang, Lishu and Chengzihe they all said they don’t expect diesel locomotives this year. The situation is unchanged from my recent report: Hengshan has four diesels and two steam locomotives in use, all the other systems remain 100% steam.
A visit to their central depot is now 200 RMB per person.
These locomotives were noted in use:
Chengzihe:
Donghaikuang:
Didao:
Lishu:
They just acquired an additional diesel, so they have four BJ 4-4 diesel-hydraulics now. Whatsoever, the oldest SY, No.0366, was still in service. All together they had Three SYs and two BJs in use. One freshly overhauled SY will be put into service after Chinese New Year. This is probably the last SY at Nanpiao to have a complete overhaul. They said that 701 workshop will be closed soon and then they have no alternative but to reduce the steam in service one by one. They will buy another diesel loco in 2008. Maybe we should tell them that Tiefa is able to do heavy overhauls ...
The GPS-based map in the central control cabin has been disused. They needed to pay a fee to use this mapping service. As it was not really necessary they stopped it. However, on the many screens in the control room anyone can still follow the movement of steam locomotives easily.
The passenger trains don’t stop any more at every station as they did before. We saw a train running through Jiuerba (= Qiaotou) and Fulongshan. Since October 1st, 2007, the old timetable from October 1994 has been replaced by a leaner one. The night trains have been cancelled.
Steam will probably fade out in 2009, they expect. By then they want to have seven diesel locomotives. Until then Nanpiao is still worth a visit. The market place alone is worth the long journey into one of the dustiest coal mine areas of China.
We noted the following SYs:
Yes, it was fresh, some would say it was cold. Morning temperatures of minus 28 degrees Centigrade in Zhalai Nuer, minus 35 in Huanan and minus 29 in Jixi speak their own language. But it’s a dry cold, if there is no wind you can easily stand it. On the other hand, these temperatures caused superb steam effects. This is the reason why you’ll find another icy tour in 2009 on the tour calendar. Keep watching it – and don’t miss the last winter steam show in the world!
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